A 38-point performance from the Saints' Trey Palmer wasn't enough as Barclay College scored the go-ahead basket with 7.8 seconds remaining to deal Central Christian College of the Bible a 91-88 setback in the quarterfinals of the Central Region Tournament on Tuesday at the Ferneau Center.

The Saints led by as many as 14 with 12 minutes to go in the game, but Barclay rallied to force overtime. The Bears scored the first six points of overtime and looked to be in control, but a Palmer 3-pointer and a Chris Woods layup on back-to-back possessions had Central Christian back in the game with just a one-point deficit.

A Barclay score inside and then two back-to-back layups in transition by Quincy James, Jr., with 14 seconds left gave the Saints an 88-87 lead. The Bears found Jameer Satchell open underneath with 7.8 second remaining on the ensuing possession for what proved to be the game-winner.

FINAL: Barclay 91, Central Christian 88 (OT)
RECORDS: Barclay (9-13), Central Christian (14-18)

GAME NOTES:

• Central Christian shot 61 percent in the first half and 7-for-15 from 3-point range before the break.
• The Saints led by as many as nine in the first half and 45-38 at the break.
• After committing just seven turnovers in the first half, the Saints had 16 turnovers in the second half and overtime period.
• Barclay finished the night with 16 offensive rebounds.
• The second half proved to be physical as the Saints combined to shoot only six free throws after halftime.

TOP PERFORMERS:

• Trey Palmer: 38 points, 15-21 field goals, 7-11 3-pointers, 4 assists, 3 steals
• Quincy James, Jr.: 21 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks, 3 steals
• Edris Hamilton: 12 points, 9 rebounds
• Chris Woods: 10 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists

SEASON COMES TO A CLOSE:

The Saints finish the season with 14 wins, a third place finish in the Midwest Christian College Conference regular season and tournament, and lose only one senior, Sam Adams, to graduation.

On the night the Saints' lone senior was honored, he also came through in the clutch moments to help Central Christian College of the Bible to a huge 80-79 come-from-behind victory over Emmaus Bible College on Saturday in the Ferneau Center.

On Senior Day, Sam Adams scored 15 points, but none were bigger than his game-tying 3-pointer with 3:38 to go that erased a 19-point deficit, and his pair of clutch free throws with 4.3 seconds remaining to seal the win.

Central Christian's Quincy James, Jr., had scored the go-ahead layup while getting fouled with 23.7 seconds left. He made the free throw, then Adams corralled the ensuing missed Emmaus shot on the other end and was fouled to set up his finishing moment.

FINAL: Central Christian 80, Emmaus Bible 79
RECORDS: Central Christian (12-16, 6-6 MCCC), Emmaus Bible (5-21, 2-10 MCCC)

GAME NOTES:

• Emmaus shot 10-for-18 from 3-point range in the first half, and finished 15-for-29 for the game.
• Thanks to the hot shooting, Emmaus jumped out to a 32-13 lead midway through the first half.
• The Saints put together a couple of 8-0 runs before intermission and found themselves down 50-39 at the break
• The Saints had success getting to the charity stripe, but made only 21 of 31 attempts.
• A night after struggling around the basket, the Saints dominated points in the paint against Emmaus, 36-20.
• With the win, the Saints swept the two-game series with Emmaus and finished 6-6 in the MCCC for third place.

TOP PERFORMERS:

• Quincy James, Jr.: 22 points, 10 rebounds
• Trey Palmer: 16 points, 8-9 free throws, 7 rebounds, 2 steals
• Sam Adams: 15 points, 3-7 3-pointers, 5 rebounds, 3 steals
• Edris Hamilton: 10 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal

UP NEXT:

The Saints are the No. 3 seed in this week's Midwest Christian College Conference Tournament at Faith Baptist Bible College in Ankeny, Iowa. They face No. 6 seed Calvary University on Thursday at 3 p.m.

On a night when the Saints' Quincy James, Jr., tied his career-high 37 points and Sam Adams scored a season-high 18, Central Christian College of the Bible came up short at Union College on Monday night.

Down three with 8.1 seconds to go, the Saints inbounded the ball under their own basket. Adams missed on a three-point attempts in the corner. Edris Hamilton grabbed the offensive rebound and kicked out to Trey Palmer for another attempt from beyond the arc that wouldn't fall just as time expired.

FINAL: Union 92, Central Christian 89
RECORDS: Central Christian (11-15), Union (8-7)

GAME NOTES:

• The Saints shot 10-for-18 from 3-point range in the first half.
• Union shot 58 percent and 11-for-15 at the free throw line in the first half.
• Union held a 53-50 lead at the break.
• The Saints cooled off from outside, going just 3-for-14 from beyond the arc in the second half
• After only five free throw attempts (4-for-5) in the first half, the Saints were 10-for-15 after halftime.
• Union was 21-for-29 at the charity stripe for the game.
• The Saint had a hard time stopping the 6-foot-8 Blake Essex (25 points, 18 rebounds) and the 6-foot-6 Braden Essex (16 points)
• It was the fourth straight game for the Saints without leading scorer Raheem Brizendine (21 ppg), who injured his knee against Manhattan Christian. Brizendine averaged 27 points per game in his last five games leading up to the injury.
• CCCB won the first meeting between the two teams, 84-70, in Moberly on Nov. 2, 2023.

TOP PERFORMERS:

• Quincy James, Jr.: 37 points, 5 rebounds, 12-18 free throws, 5 assists
• Sam Adams: 18 points, 6-10 3-pointers, 6 rebounds, 4 assists
• Trey Palmer: 9 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists
• Chris Woods: 6 assists, 3 rebounds

UP NEXT:

The Saints wrap up the regular season with a pair of Midwest Christian College Conference games at home. They host Faith Baptist Bible College on Friday at 7 p.m., then Emmaus Bible College on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Despite entering the 2023-24 season with a lot of new faces and facing a challenging schedule, the Central Christian College of the Bible men's basketball team still managed plenty of highlights during the first half of play.

The Saints ended 2023 with a 6-7 overall record after a 107-100 victory at home over the NAIA foe University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy. The Eutectics handed Central Christian a six-point loss in St. Louis the month before.

The win ended a four-game skid by the Saints against a combo of NCCAA Division II and NAIA opponents. Prior to that, Central Christian had just put together dramatic-finish wins against Maranatha Baptist University and NCAA Division III member Westminster College.

"We've had some success early on, but we've also had some nights where we felt like if we could have limited our turnovers by just one or two then we could have a couple more wins to our name," Central Christian coach Jack Defreitas said. 

The Saints had two chances to pull off a road win at Hannibal-LaGrange University in November, but a turnover and a missed shot on their final two possessions resulted in a one-point loss.

However, that setback may have helped the Saints down the stretch when they needed baskets in the final possessions of their wins against Maranatha and Westminster the following week.

"I think it absolutely helped us," Defreitas said. "We are playing with one senior, and just three players who have ever played together. I do believe each game that goes by gives us a chance to get better."

Through 13 games, the Saints are being led by sophomore Raheem Brizendine with 18.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Closely behind is junior Quincy James, Jr., who is just 40 points away from scoring 1,000 for his career, at 17.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per contest.

Sophomore guard Trey Palmer is averaging 13.3 points per outing, while a few other Saints have notable stats at the break. Sophomore guard Tristan Brand is shooting 50 percent (16-for-32) from 3-point range for ninth in the NCCAA DII. Junior guard Chris Woods is averaging 3.3 assists per game and ranks 16th in assist/turnover ratio, while James, Jr., ranks 10th in blocks with 1.5 per game, and Palmer is sixth in steals with 2.5 per game.

As a team, Central Christian ranks fourth NCCAA DII in field goal percentage (47.6), fourth in blocks per game (3.9), sixth in points per game (85.1), eighth in rebound margin (3.1), ninth in steals per game (9.1), and 10th in assists per game (15.7).

The Saints return to action on Jan. 6 with a tough task as they travel to defending NCCAA DII national champion Kansas Christian College. KCC, ranked No. 10 in the latest DII coaches poll, won the first meeting between the two teams, 104-89, on November 29 in Moberly.

Following the game at KCC, the Saints travel to Union College (Neb.) on Jan. 9, then return home for the start of Midwest Christian College Conference play against Ozark Christian College on Jan. 11.

"We're excited to get back out on the court," Defreitas said. "I love this group of guys. They are hungry, and a team with a lot of potential. It's going to be exciting to see what we can do during the second half of this season."